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Taylor Swift Remembers How Tom Petty Inspired Her as a Musician: 'A Kind of Songwriting I Idolized'

Elizabeth Stanton‍

11:50 AM PDT, October 5, 2017

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Fans and friends continue to pay respects to the late Tom Petty and his influential legacy after his unexpected death at the age of 66 earlier this week. Taylor Swift is among those who count Petty as an inspiration, and recounted the impact he had on her in an interview with Rolling Stone.

"It said so much in the lyrics, the concepts, the stories, the message, the nuances...but always brought you back to a hook that got stuck in everyone’s head," she continues. "He motivated thousands of guitarists to learn to play just because they wanted to be able to play 'Free Fallin'.' Count me as one of them."

Swift has shown admiration for the late rocker before. During her 2009 Fearless tour, she recorded a cover of Petty's iconic hit, "American Girl."